Al Pina, of the Florida Minority Community Reinvestment Coalition, says grant makers in the state have a responsibility to do more to help poor minority families.

Phelan Ebenhack, for The Chronicle

Lisa Thomson, of the Nature Conservancy's Florida chapter, says her 27-year tenure has had substantial benefits.

Tim Fuller, for The Chronicle

Sarah A. Jones, of the Emerge Center Against Domestic Abuse, says mergers can be a good option, but they require more work and money than many charities anticipate.

From the issue dated March 26, 2009 About Giving THE MACARTHUR FOUNDATION has chosen for its new president a former U.S. ambassador with broad international experience, Robert L. Gallucci. A FLORIDA ACTIVIST has joined forces with the Greenlining Institute to press foundations in his state to do more for poor minority families. MOST DONORS have no plans to reduce their giving in response to the recession, a new survey indicates, but a significant number are still undecided. IN HIS NEW BOOK, The Life You Can Save, the philosopher Peter Singer argues that failure to contribute money to help the world's poorest people is immoral. TERRANCE KEENAN, a longtime official of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation who developed several signature grant-making programs to benefit needy people, has died at 85 (Legacies). THE FACE OF PHILANTHROPY: The Silk Road Theatre Project seeks to use drama to confront bias against Muslims and Arabs. RECENT GRANTS by foundations, corporations, and other grant makers. RECENT GIFTS to nonprofit organizations and institutions. About Managing WORKING TOGETHER is one way charities may get through the economic downturn, as many groups explore the benefits of mergers, acquisitions, and other collaborative arrangements. FIVE SOCIAL-SERVICE CHARITIES in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area established a separate organization to handle "back office" operations for all of them, and the benefits have gone beyond cost savings. MERGING INTO A SINGLE ENTITY was not without challenges for two domestic-abuse charities in Tucson, but the move has helped clarify their identity and eliminate competition in fund raising. SEEKING PLANNED GIFTS is often a stretch for small groups with few fund-raising resources, but three children's charities in New York are seeing some success by working at it collaboratively. FISCAL SPONSORSHIPS, which bring together established charities and groups that lack tax-exempt status, may be easier to set up with a new online tool. TWO MUSEUMS IN CHATTANOOGA, TENN., arranged to have a nearby, and much larger, aquarium handle their administrative tasks, a collaboration that has grown to include programs and fund raising. A TEXAS COLLABORATIVE involves some 100 individuals from more than 50 breast-cancer charities in identifying, and putting into practice, ways for the groups to work together. SEEKING PLANNED GIFTS is often a stretch for small groups with few fund-raising resources, but three children's charities in New York are seeing some success by working at it collaboratively. THE PRESIDENT'S PROPOSAL to limit tax breaks for charitable donations by wealthy Americans is still on the table in Congress, and the nonprofit world is weighing its response. THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE may decide to tax board members of private foundations who invested the grants makers' money with Bernard L. Madoff, an agency official told the Senate Finance Committee. EMPLOYEES who run programs are the ones charities are mostly likely to lay off during the recession, according to a pair of surveys of groups in the Washington and New York metropolitan areas. THE WEB SITES of nonprofit groups offer too little information about the charities' finances or leadership, says a new report from GuideStar. SUDAN'S EXPULSION of 13 international aid groups from Darfur has put a serious strain on the displacement camps there and will create gaps in service that aid workers say will be impossible to fill. A BILL TO EXPAND national-service programs passed the House of Representatives last week by a vote of 321 to 105. SEVERAL ISLAMIC GROUPS are considering ending their cooperation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, saying the bureau is not treating American Muslim organizations fairly. About Fund Raising THE HIGH TURNOVER among fund raisers has been slowed by the recession, a trend many in the profession welcome. A UNIVERSITY COMBATS high turnover among fund raisers through a program to train people who exhibit strong potential for the job. WORKING TOGETHER, two development veterans have melded the art and science of soliciting donations to turn Indiana University into a fund-raising powerhouse. SCHOLARS USE RESEARCH to dispel fund-raising myths and prove what works. NEW DEALS MAKE IT EASIER for charities to solicit donations through cellphone text messages. UPDATE ON CAMPAIGNS for endowments, capital improvements, and other needs. INTEREST RATES for planned gifts, issued by the Internal Revenue Service. About Philanthropy Careers THE NAACP'S PRESIDENT may be the youngest in the group's hundred-year history, but Benjamin Jealous is no stranger to social-justice work (New on the Job). SHOULD JOB SEEKERS take a position below their level of skill and experience, even in a bad economy? Experts answer questions about nonprofit matters (Hotline). PEOPLE: Appointments and promotions in the nonprofit world. About Technology DONORS WHO GIVE ONLINE tend to be less loyal than more traditional contributors, a study of giving at national charities suggests. INTERNET FUND RAISING ROSE 14 PERCENT LAST YEAR, but the rate of growth was far below the previous year's, according to an analysis by Convio. SOFTWARE that makes it easier to type the characters of Native American languages is a key element of efforts by a New Mexico charity to preserve endangered indigenous tongues. GUIDESTAR has made changes to its Web site that allow nonprofit groups to add more data, including photographs and videos. Also in This Issue PETER GOLDBERG offers words of caution about nonprofit mergers. PETER FRUMKIN urges charities not to forsake moral and emotional messages in making their case for support. SEAN STANNARD-STOCKTON wants grant makers to share what they know about making a difference. VARTAN GREGORIAN remembers the philanthropist Leonore Annenberg. PHIL BUCHANAN AND ELLIE BUTEAU, of the Center for Effective Philanthropy, argue that while grant makers often want to give advice and other support, many have no idea how. LETTERS: on the pitfalls of taking stimulus money from Washington, the false choice between government and philanthropic support for charities, and the uncomplicated consequences of reducing tax breaks for charitable giving. NEW BOOKS: A plea for channeling more charity to the needy around the world, a career guide for people who want to change the world, and a handbook on using storytelling techniques to win grants.